The best ways I've found to discover never heard before details on a recording is to either get a new piece of equipment, and listen intently, or to have someone point out minutia that they've heard when also doing intense listening.

So in a room of people you say, "wow, now I can hear the squeaking kick drum pedal," just as you first notice it, and everyone else will go, "oh, wow, I do too, that's amazing."

I can't say for sure what you've heard before, and the listening conditions. But this is why true double-blind testing is needed. Once you hear a new detail on one piece of equipment, you must be able to quickly switch to the other, and see if you can hear the same thing, and then back again. But you can't know which you're testing at any point.

Chris, I agree with all you said on the blind testing and did many times A\B switch blind testing in my life. But in the particular case I have in mind and that I mentionned, in one case you would hear it (the pedal skweak)) and the other case you would not at all. The A\B switch or double blind was not even necessary. Now is it a good thing. Not necessarily. I also remember another case with A\B switching where an old nakamichi CD player "beated" an very expensive processors (audio note). So I am absolutely not saying that more expensive is better. I am saying that not all sources are equal. And I also think that many people overlook the quality of the source. I also believe that your ear get use to a sound, so when you listen to something new, your brain is telling you that it is not as good.

Anyway, I would have like to buy the LFR1100 but I do not have the room (for now) to really enjoy them. So I bought the new M100 instead. Cannot wait to receive them and try them out!!! . I do not think I will buy the DSP box for now as I think it could be more usefull on the LFR1100 (from all your explanations) and I am not convince it could improve my listening experience with the room I have now (I would have to do an A\B switch test).

Charles, the digital to analog conversion process has no mechanism by which it could magically(even if the seller labeled a DAC "Magic" or "Majik")bring out previously unheard or almost inaudible material. That can happen when the loudness level is higher.

You'll undoubtedly enjoy your music through the M100s, and it's probably right that the DSP correction of the speaker(not the preceding electronics)which is at best extremely subtle, wouldn't be a wise purchase.

That's a good point. When I got my flagship DVD player that was "tuned" by Air Studios, and listened to its analog outputs vs. the digital connection to my receiver I was blown away in the difference in sound.

Turns out Air's tuning was mostly about running the RCA jacks at about -8 dBV, instead of the more usual -10 for single-ended, line level. I enabled the volume trim settings, and its unity position was actually correct. So with the volume control off (the default) it was running the outputs hot. Louder always sounds better.

The speed at which my receiver reacquires an HDMI sync is too slow for any quick flipping between inputs. With the extra Voltage disabled, and the 3 second delay between switches, I can no longer tell a difference.

I was not thinking that only the DAC chip per say might have caused the difference but also the rest of the circuitry. I made sure thought that the volume level was the same (because I also experienced what Chris described very well). What do you guys think about the quality of the power supply and its ability to keep the current constant (whatever the electronic component, amp , preamp, processors etc...)?